Critical Survey: UBS Group (NYSE:UBS) and National Australia Bank (OTCMKTS:NABZY)

UBS Group (NYSE:UBS) and National Australia Bank (OTCMKTS:NABZY) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, valuation, risk, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares UBS Group and National Australia Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
UBS Group	10.88%	8.68%	0.48%
National Australia Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A

Risk & Volatility

UBS Group has a beta of 1.16, suggesting that its share price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, National Australia Bank has a beta of 1.18, suggesting that its share price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for UBS Group and National Australia Bank, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
UBS Group	1	6	5	1	2.46
National Australia Bank	2	0	0	3	2.80

UBS Group presently has a consensus target price of $60.30, indicating a potential upside of 37.69%. National Australia Bank has a consensus target price of $38.00, indicating a potential upside of 158.15%. Given National Australia Bank’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe National Australia Bank is more favorable than UBS Group.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares UBS Group and National Australia Bank”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
UBS Group	$76.12 billion	1.80	$7.77 billion	$2.36	18.56
National Australia Bank	$38.78 billion	2.32	$4.35 billion	N/A	N/A

UBS Group has higher revenue and earnings than National Australia Bank.

Summary

UBS Group beats National Australia Bank on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About UBS Group

UBS Group AG provides financial advice and solutions to private, institutional, and corporate clients worldwide. It operates through five divisions: Global Wealth Management, Personal & Corporate Banking, Asset Management, Investment Bank, and Non-core and Legacy. The company offers investment advice, estate and wealth planning, investing, corporate and banking, and investment management, as well as mortgage, securities-based, and structured lending solutions. It also provides personal banking products and services, such as deposits, credit and debit cards, and online and mobile banking, as well as lending, investments, retirement, and wealth management services; and corporate and institutional solutions, including equity and debt capital markets, syndicated and structured credit, private placements, leasing, traditional financing, and transaction banking solutions for payment and cash management services, trade and export finance, and global custody solutions. In addition, the company offers equities, fixed income, hedge funds, real estate and private markets, indexed and alternative beta strategies, asset allocation and currency investment strategies, customized multi-asset solutions, advisory and fiduciary services, and multi-manager hedge fund solutions and advisory services. Further, it advises clients on strategic business opportunities and helps them raise capital to fund their activities; enables its clients to buy, sell, and finance securities on capital markets and to manage their risks and liquidity; distributes, trades in, finances, and clears cash equities and equity-linked products; structures, originates, and distributes new equity and equity-linked issues; and originates, distributes, manages risk, and provides liquidity in foreign exchange, rates, credit and precious metals. The company was formerly known as UBS AG and changed its name to UBS Group AG in December 2014. UBS Group AG was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland.

About National Australia Bank

National Australia Bank Limited provides financial services to individuals and businesses in Australia, New Zealand, and internationally. The company operates through Business and Private Banking; Personal Banking; Corporate and Institutional Banking; New Zealand Banking; and Corporate Functions and Other segments. It accepts transaction accounts, savings accounts, debit cards, and term deposits; and specialized accounts, such as foreign currency, business interest, cash maximiser, farm management, community free saver, statutory trust, and project bank accounts, as well as farm management deposits. In addition, the company provides home loans, personal loans, and business loans; vehicle and equipment finance; and trade and invoice finance, as well as business overdrafts and bank guarantees. Further, it offers insurance products consisting of home and content, landlord, travel, car, caravan and trailer, life, and business insurance products; and pension, self-managed super funds, cash management, and financial planning and advisory services. Additionally, the company provides investment products; credit, debit, and business cards; payments and merchant services; online and internet banking services; small business services; international and foreign exchange solutions; and industry specific banking services. The company was founded in 1834 and is based in Melbourne, Australia.